New Statesman - Books

I don't usually do book reviews, but this one looks interesting.
An End to Suffering: the Buddha in the world. Pankaj Mishra. New Statesman

"The Simplest Life" by Sasha Issenberg

Why Americans idolise the Amish. Washington Monthly

BBC NEWS | Entertainment | TV and Radio | Legendary radio DJ John Peel dies

RIP John Peel.

Obituary. BBC

Who is John Peel?

John Peel's favourite song was Teenage Kicks by the Undertones. For more info see
SALON

My old band The Heretics used to play Teenage Kicks - great song.

AN V.162: Aghatavinaya Sutta (2)

Aghatavinaya Sutta = Subduing Hatred. AN V.162. Accesstoinsight

It's official - the platypus is weird. 25/10/2004. ABC News Online

It's official - the platypus is weird. ABC News
That's Australian Broadcasting Corp. btw!

TIME Magazine: The Quiz: How Spiritual Are You?

How Spiritual Are You? Time
Which raises the question of course: what does the word "spiritual" mean? The quizz itself isn't that revelatory, and isn't even web-enabled, but deconstructing the supposition behind it is good fun.

Language Log: They are a prophet

I'm a fan of the singular they as a non-gender-specific way of referring to someone in the 3rd person (I think). This little article shows why it makes sense. Language Log
Looks like a promising site for other language stuff as well - although quite heavy duty in places.

BBC NEWS | Programmes | Click Online | Macs do Star Wars dirty work

Article about how the early Star Wars movies were cleaned up (literally) for digitization and release on DVD. BBC

History of Sandwiches

History of Sandwiches. whatscookingamerica.net
Informative guide to the history of the sandwich, invented apparently by Rabbi Hillel the Elder. But also an interesting case study in copyright. Ms Stradley prominently displays her claim to authorship of the document and forbids any use of it without referencing. However it seems pretty clear that she has cobbled this history together from other sources. So wherein lies her claim to authorship? If she has just reproduced the research of others, then does she really have any moral right to assert that this is her intellectual property. I think not!

Artificial Life and Other Experiments

Artificial Life and Other Experiments - another a life site. arieldolan.com
I particularly like his 'floys'.

Wonders of Math - The Game of Life

Really good presentation of The Game of Life - cellular automata. math.com
Lots of other math stuff as well.

Wired News: An Artist's Junkyard of Dreams

An Artist's Junkyard of Dreams. Wired
I can, like, totally relate to this!

Sleepwalking woman had sex with strangers. New Scientist

What's wrong with Falun Gong - World - www.theage.com.au

What's wrong with Falun Gong? theage.com.au
A thoughful look at this group - they get imprisoned and tortured in China but still believe. What they believe apparently involves quite a bit to do with extraterrestials and the founder is considered a "living Buddha", but hey, people I know believe the same sort of things (especially the extraterrestrial thing!).

Winners of the Ig� Nobel Prize

The 2004 Ignoble Awards have been anounced. Don't look if you like Country Music - no mention of the other kind of music (Western) however. improb.com

Vegetarian Phrases In Other Languages

Vegetarian Phrases In Other Languages. hedweb

AN V.148: Sappurisadana Sutta

New on Access to Insight. Sappurisadana Sutta : how the superior person gives gifts. Access to Insight.

Wired News: Jacket Grows From Living Tissue

Another kinda creepy one (remember the transgenic cactus?). Now the boffins are growing a leather jacket from stems cells. Wired
Apparently there are no victims... except maybe fashion victims.

fwbo news :: Publish Status

Mount St. Helens action. vulcan.wr.usgs.gov

fwbo news

My friend and colleague Sahananda got married a while back. Here is his wedding website - might be of interest for other Windhorse/Cambridgites, but probably dead boring for the rest of you. One awful photo of me buried in there - no prizes, but if you find it you might congratulate yourself on your persistence. Sahananda and Rose

My very simple Javascript version of Eno's Oblique Strategies - looking at his website he doesn't seem to mind people doing this sort of stuff. (It wouldn't take much to spruce this up huh?) Eno's Oblique Strategies
On the Official Website you can order your own set of cards for only £30(!) and see a lot of info about the cards.

Intro to the Art of Fugue

Intro to the Art of Fugue
Good for getting a better understanding of renaissance counter-point. Which I am trying to do.